Why Use Groups and Groupings for RSI?
RSI (Regular and Substantive Interaction) requires instructor-initiated, meaningful academic interaction that occurs regularly.
In high-enrollment courses, groups make RSI scalable by letting faculty:
Communicate with students in smaller cohorts.
Facilitate more manageable discussions.
Target feedback or messaging to specific groups.
Delegate or differentiate interaction for co-teaching or TAs.
RSI Goals Achieved with Groups & Groupings:
Regular communication at the group level.
Substantive engagement through focused discussions.
Scalable feedback and monitoring.
Moodle Groups: How They Work
What Are Groups?
Groups in Moodle let you divide students into smaller sets within a single course shell.
This allows targeted communication, activity participation, and grading.
Group Types:
Manual Groups – Instructor manually assigns students.
Auto-create Groups – Moodle automatically generates groups (e.g., 25 students per group).
Import Groups – Upload groups via CSV file (useful for very large courses).
How to Create Groups (Moodle 4.5):
Go to Participants → Groups.
Click Create group.
Enter a Group name (e.g., “Group A” or “Cohort 1”).
Adjust optional settings (e.g., group picture, description).
Click Save changes.
Add users by selecting the group → Add/remove users.
Pro Tip: Use auto-create to build multiple groups at once.
Select Auto-create groups → Choose naming scheme (e.g., Group @).
Define group size or number of groups.
Assign students automatically or randomly.
Moodle Groupings: How They Work
What Are Groupings?
Groupings are collections of groups.
They allow you to assign specific activities to specific sets of groups.
Example:
Groups: Group A, Group B, Group C
Grouping 1: (Group A + Group B)
Grouping 2: (Group C only)
This is especially helpful when:
Teaching cross-listed or multi-section courses.
Assigning different tasks or deadlines to different cohorts.
Assigning TA coverage to certain groups.
How to Create Groupings (Moodle 4.5):
Go to Participants → Groupings.
Click Create grouping.
Name your grouping and save.
Click the Show groups in grouping icon (two heads icon).
Add the desired groups to this grouping.
Pro Tip: One grouping can include multiple groups, and an activity can be restricted to just that grouping.
Group Mode Settings in Activities
When adding or editing an activity (e.g., Forum, Assignment, Quiz), you can choose Group mode under the “Common module settings” section:
| Group Mode | What It Does | RSI Application |
|---|---|---|
| No groups | All students participate together | Good for course-wide announcements |
| Separate groups | Students only see their own group | Ideal for discussion forums or group submissions |
| Visible groups | Students see other groups but can only participate in their own | Good for peer learning and showcasing |
? “Group mode” must be turned on at the activity level to be effective.
? You can set a course default group mode under Course settings → Groups.
Practical RSI Examples Using Groups & Groupings
1. Group-Level Announcements
Tool: Announcements Forum + Groups
By default, announcements go to the entire class.
To target groups, create a forum with group mode enabled.
Example RSI Action:
Post separate announcements to each group (e.g., tailored reminders or content recaps).
Students receive more personalized and relevant communication.
RSI Alignment: Regular instructor-initiated communication.
2. Group Discussion Forums
Tool: Forum (Separate Groups Mode)
Create one forum activity.
Enable Separate groups so each group has its own discussion space.
Instructor can post prompts once, and each group has a private thread.
Example RSI Action:
Post weekly discussion questions.
Reply to one or two student posts in each group to provide guidance or clarification.
Summarize key points in a wrap-up announcement.
RSI Alignment: Substantive interaction; scalable instructor engagement.
3. Group-Specific Feedback
Tool: Assignment with Groups or Groupings
Use Group submission (if students submit as a team).
Or use group restrictions to assign different prompts or due dates.
Example RSI Action:
Record a short Panopto video summarizing common feedback for each group.
Provide one individualized comment per student as needed.
RSI Alignment: Targeted academic feedback.
4. Group-Based Messaging
Tool: Participants → Groups → “Send message”
Quickly message all members of a group without spamming the entire class.
Example RSI Action:
If a group’s discussion activity is lagging, send a direct message encouraging engagement.
RSI Alignment: Instructor-initiated, timely communication.
5. Groupings for Differentiated Instruction
Tool: Groupings + Restrict Access
Assign specific content or assessments to different groupings (e.g., section-specific deadlines, project paths).
Example RSI Action:
Provide differentiated instructions or staggered deadlines for multiple sections.
Follow up with tailored reminders or video check-ins for each grouping.
RSI Alignment: Regular, meaningful interaction across cohorts.
Suggested RSI Workflow with Groups & Groupings
| Week | RSI Activity | Group Feature Used | Tool | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Post welcome messages to each group | Groups | Forum | Personalize each intro |
| 2 | Facilitate forum discussions | Separate Groups | Forum | 1–2 replies per group |
| 3 | Provide targeted feedback | Group submissions | Assignment | Use audio/video feedback |
| 4 | Reach out to inactive groups | Messaging | Groups | Automated or manual |
| 5 | Section-specific mini-lesson | Groupings | Page / Panopto | Target sections separately |
Tips for Managing Groups Effectively
Name groups consistently (e.g., “Section 01 – Group A”) to stay organized.
Use auto-create for large courses to save time.
Train TAs or co-instructors to manage specific groups.
Pair groups with completion tracking for easier monitoring.
Keep a simple RSI log (e.g., “Replied to each of 12 groups in forum Week 3”).
RSI Documentation with Groups
Tracking RSI with groups also helps with compliance:
Forum logs: show replies per group.
Messaging logs: show targeted outreach.
Assignment grading records: show feedback per group.
Activity reports: show participation levels.
Export logs if needed to demonstrate frequency and substance of interaction.
Key Takeaways
Groups = organization (divide and personalize)
Groupings = control (target content to subsets)
Group mode = engagement structure
RSI becomes scalable when interaction is structured intentionally.
Combining Groups + Forums + Messaging + Feedback creates regular, meaningful instructor presence in large or complex courses.